1. Summary of the Invention
This invention relates to a golf bag for use with golf carts and, more particularly, to an improved golf bag specifically designed for use with golf carts and having an oppositely sloped upper edge for the receipt of golf clubs and with pockets located remote from the rear face at an elevation below the handle.
2. Description of the Background Art
In the field of golf bags, it is the normal practice for the golf bag to be provided with a shoulder strap and handle on the front face and with the upper edge angling downwardly from the front face. When a caddie thus holds the bag by the handle and tips it forward for club viewing, selection and removal by the player, the shorter irons are closest to the player, with the longer woods most remote and with the intermediate and long irons therebetween. In this manner, the player is provided with a good view of all the clubs to facilitate club selection and removal.
With the advent of golf carts, however, whether of the motorized type or the pull type, it is the practice to use such bags and to secure them on the backside of the cart. The cart is provided with a strap so that when the bag is placed with its rear face in contact with the back of the cart, and with its handle and shoulder strap exposed, the golf cart strap may be threaded through the handle.
When utilized in such manner, the wooden clubs are closest to the player with the short irons most remote and with the intermediate and long irons therebetween. Thus, when playing with a conventional golf bag secured to a golf cart, the longer woods obscure the player's view of all the irons while the intermediate and long irons obscure the view of the short irons. Club viewing, selection and removal of the appropriate club is thereby rendered more difficult than necessary.
Another shortcoming of conventional golf bags being used with golf carts is the fact that golf bag pockets for the storage of golfing items, i.e. balls, tees, glove, sweater, etc., are normally located around the entire periphery of the bag and at all elevation heights along the bag's vertical extent. This is an additional inconvenience since items in the pockets desired by the golfer may be wedged between the bag and cart after the bag has been strapped in position. Further, by having the pockets at all locations along the elevational extent of the bag, the upper portions of the pockets will become constricted and inaccessible to the player due to the golf cart strap being secured through the handle of the bag.
Many types of golf bags are known today and are in the patent literature. Such golf bags provide one benefit or another. Consider for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,726,597 to Hickin; 4,778,136 to Reimers and Re. 33,203 to Reimers. Each of these patents describes a golf bag constructed for particular use with a golf cart or stand. In the Hickin device, not only is the golf bag of a specialized construction rendering it less suitable for non-golf cart use, but the golf cart itself also requires special construction. This effectively raises the cost and inconvenience of both the bag and cart when not used together. With regard to the Reimers patents, the disclosed golf bags are modified for use with golf stands. Here again the bag is rendered less suitable for use without a golf cart or without the stand due to the excess components which increase complexity, weight as well as cost of the bag.
In another grouping of patents, various bag constructions are disclosed which attempt to improve convenience when used with golf carts. Consider U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,749,958 to Innes; 4,282,912 to Brown; and 4,768,650 to Chancellor. In the Innes patent, the pockets are in various unusual orientations on a triangular base and no handle is employed to facilitate holding. In the Brown patent, the pockets are separately repositionable at various locations of the golf bag. Convenience is provided but at the expense of bag cost and complexity. Lastly, in the Chancellor patent, a rigid handle is utilized which is positionable through a hole in the carrying strap. In such arrangement the bag may be configured into a smaller cross sectional configuration for storage but no facility is provided to simplify use by the golfer when secured to a cart.
A third grouping of patents includes U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,383,563 to Kirchoff, Jr.; 4,709,814 to Antonious; 4,750,617 to Anderson and 4,915,221 to Spangler. Each of these patents recognizes the need for positioning a selected club in an orientation for being easily removed by the player. In each of these patents a rotary member is provided in the bag for rotating interior components to bring a specific club to a specific forward position for being removed by the player. In each of the instances, however, greater weight, complexity and cost is built into the bag rendering it of less desirability, particularly when used without a cart.
The last patent of interest is U.S. Pat. No. 4,796,752 to Reimers. Reimers identifies the desirability of angling the upper edge of a golf bag differently from the normal configuration in order to facilitate a player's viewing of the clubs as well as club selection, and removal from the bag, particularly when used in conjunction with a cart. Reimers, however, has the high point of its upper edge in the middle with downwardly sloping edges forwardly and rearwardly thereof. The upper edge of the collar is higher at the handle end than at the cart end. This construction only partially facilitates club viewing, selection and removal. Further, Reimers does not recognize the desirability of having pockets out of contact with the golf cart and at an elevation below the handle to render the pockets less likely to be constricted by a strap holding the bag in place.
None of these golf bags described in the prior art patent literature is designed for maximizing its use either with or without a cart.
As evidenced by the above referred to patents as well as the commercial devices, a wide variety of golf bags have been designed for use with or without golf carts. No prior patent or commercial device, however, is directed to the combination of advantageous features as intended herein.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved bag for carrying golf clubs and related equipment comprising a rigid lower base; a tubular spacer connected at its lower end to the base and defining a body having a front face, rear face and side faces, the spacer being sufficiently rigid to retain its axial length for retaining golf clubs therein; a rigid collar connected to the upper edge of the spacer, the collar adapted for the receipt of golf clubs positioned with the handle end of the golf clubs extending downward through the spacer to the base, the distance between the upper edge of the collar and the base at the front face being less than the distance between the upper edge of the collar and the base at the rear face; cross bars coupled across the interior of the collar, the cross bar located closer to the front face being lower than the cross bar located closer to the rear face; a carrying handle and a shoulder strap connected to the front face of the spacer; and pocket members connected to the side and front faces of the spacer at elevations beneath the handle whereby access to these pockets is unimpaired by the golf cart and its strap.
It is a further object of the present invention to facilitate the viewing, selection and removal of golf clubs from a golf bag secured to a golf cart.
It is a further object of the present invention to locate the pockets of a golf cart in such orientation peripherally and elevationally so as to maximize usable pocket space when the bag is coupled to a golf cart.
Lastly, it is an object of the present invention to maximize the convenience and utility of golf bags when used with golf carts.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be obtained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiments in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.